GERMAN TOURISM INDUSTRY WENT DOWN

After another record year, the German tourism industry has suffered a slump for the first time in April. The number of overnight stays in the country dropped, probably because of the early Easter.

The early Easter brought a small dent in German tourism in April. The number of overnight stays of domestic guests and international tourists decreased by 2 percent to 32.5 million compared to the previous year as reported by the Federal Statistics Office.

The fact that Easter this year fell on March may have contributed to this, according to German tourism board. Last year, the Easter holiday was in April, when the weather was more pleasant.

According to the Wiesbaden authority, the number of nights spent in hotels by travelers from abroad increased by 5 percent to 6.3 million. However, there was a decline of 3 percent with respect to the domestic visitors amounting to 26.2 million.

In the first four months, the hotels recorded an overall increase of 4 percent amounting to 114.1 million overnight stays. This takes into account the accommodation establishments with at least ten beds.

Last year represented a great success for German tourism industry. There was the sixth consecutive record with respect to the overnight stays totaling 436.4 million in 2015. Restaurant owners and hoteliers reported a 4.2 percent increase in sales.